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Reede v. State12/20/2000
Appeal from the Sixth Judicial Circuit, Mellette County, SD Hon. James W. Anderson, Judge
Affirmed in part; Reversed in part
Considered on Briefs Oct 25, 2000
[ ] Nancy Reede was injured during the course of her employment with the South Dakota Department of Transportation (DOT). Reede worked and lived in the Black Hills at the time of injury and remained there for over two years. She briefly lived in several other places and eventually moved to Forsyth, Montana. Reede sought odd-lot benefits based on her inability to find suitable employment in her community. The Department of Labor (Department) determined her community to be Forsyth/Rosebud, Montana and not the Black Hills area. The Department found that suitable employment did not exist in Forsyth/Rosebud, Montana and awarded odd-lot benefits. We affirm issue 2 and reverse and remand issue 1 in part.
FACTS
[ ] Reede obtained employment in Rapid City with the help of her sister who was living in the area at that time. Reede had not worked in the Rapid City area prior to beginning employment with the DOT. On June 29, 1993, Reede was struck by a paver while on the job. She was thrown a short distance onto an asphalt surface and suffered extensive bruising of her right hand, right leg, left shoulder, left side of her back, left side of her pelvis and the left leg. She sought treatment at the Rapid City Regional Hospital a short time after this incident.
[ ] As a result of this injury, Reede suffers from a ten-percent impairment of her whole person. () Reede was never instructed that she was unable to work following the incident. It is undisputed that Reede did not search for any jobs in the Black Hills area from August of 1994 until approximately May of 1996. Reede's own vocational expert opined that "the Black Hills was a much more favorable job market for a person with [Reede's] limitations." Reede instead chose to home school her children and work as a homemaker.
[ ] Prior to the hearing, Reede moved a number of times for varying reasons. She lived in Wyoming, Miles City, Montana, Belle Fourche, South Dakota, Rosebud, Montana, Dupree, South Dakota and then in Forsyth, Montana. The Department found that Reede's moves were to follow members of her family or to find work, and that she "was forced to move from Rapid City when sister went bankrupt."
[ ] In Forsyth, Montana, Reede lives with her sister again who relocated there from the Rapid City area. The Department found that Reede moved to Forsyth out of financial necessity, intends to stay there, has a good support network in that community, and had nowhere else to live. () The Department specifically found that Reede's intentions in moving to Forsyth, "have never been to establish a residence in Montana for the purpose of obtaining workers' compensation benefits. Her intent has always been legitimate and she is not living in Montana to qualify for workers' compensation benefits."
[ ] While in Montana, Reede worked with a job placement specialist and a vocational counselor for the State. She registered with job service and unsuccessfully applied for more than thirty jobs. The Department found that Reede made a "reasonable search for work in her community." The Department only considered the Forsyth/Rosebud area as her community for workers' compensation purposes. The Department also found that there existed no evidence that "claimant has purposefully taken herself out of the labor market by moving to Forsyth, Montana."
[ ] As a result of these determinations, the Department concluded that the Forsyth/Rosebud area was Reede's community, and that she had met her "prima facie sho
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